Christmas Day in Colon, Panama

We have come to expect delightful surprises from Viking, and Christmas Day did not disappoint.  We returned from last night’s dinner to find that a pair of panettoni and a bottle of Prosecco had been delivered to our cabin.  (Only one panettone pictured here, as the other was breakfast!)

Even though it is Christmas Day, a welcoming group of Panamanians greeted us as we started out on our planned excursions or, in our case, a discovery walk around town.

Colon is the Atlantic gateway to the Panama Canal, so cranes and containers dominate the landscape.  We were happy to find that the port was quiet, however, as the many drivers, crane operators, etc, had the day at home with their families.  Things will swing back into action tomorrow morning, and we will join the precious cargo making its way through the canal.

Guest lecturers onboard have given talks on the Panama Canal.  The ones we did not attend in person are available on the ship’s television channel, so we got caught up today and will attend the final one this evening.  Our Viking Sky is small enough to go through the original Gatun locks, delivering us into the Pacific Ocean by day’s end tomorrow.

Phone calls and messages from family and friends, together with warm holiday greetings from those onboard, have made this a lovely and memorable Christmas Day.